Category: Ayurveda

MUNCIE — The East met the West on Saturday morning as John Peterson, a family-practice physician, introduced an audience of 20 to an ancient form of alternative medicine called Ayurveda. Sitting in a conference room at the Family Practice Center, the participants listened attentively to Peterson as he talked about this 5,000-year-old philosophy that is often called the “mother of all healing.” “(Ayurvedic medicine) fulfills a need,” Peterson said. “People are always looking for better ways to experience bliss and happiness,” and Ayurvedic medicine is a sure pathway, according to Peterson. Ayurveda, a Sanskrit term meaning the science of life,

A leading Indian yoga guru has been cleared of mixing human bones and animal parts in his medicines. Uttaranchal state Health Minister Tilak Raj Behad told the BBC Swami Ramdev‘s medicines contained no objectionable ingredients and were purely herbal. He said four samples of medicines were sent to Shriram Institute of Industrial Research in Delhi, which is recognised by the Indian government. Swami Ramdev had described the allegations as a conspiracy. Bone powder The institute submitted its report last week after testing the samples. The state government had set up an enquiry into the charges made against Swami Ramdev by

Charges that traditional medicines manufactured by a flamboyant television yoga guru contain human skulls and animal parts have sparked a political feud in India, pitting Hindu nationalists against communists and the federal government against a state. Indian authorities allow animal parts, including pigeon blood, ox bile and even cat testicles, in drugs used for Ayurveda, the ancient Hindu health system. However, human parts are banned, and the allegation by Brinda Karat, Communist party leader, that Ayurvedic drugs made by Ramdev contain them has enraged his supporters. Hindu nationalist politicians accuse Karat of trying to undermine the Hindu religion. The charges

KATHMANDU, Nepal : Ayurveda is a form of alternative healing and nowhere is it more widely practised than in the Himalayan kingdom of Nepal. The Naradevi Ayurveda Campus, the constituent campus of the Institute of Medicine in Kathmandu, is the only university that provides a Bachelor of Ayurvedic Medicine and Surgery (BAMS) degree. The institution runs graduate courses, with 15 admissions per year. One student said, “In my Ayurvedic studies, I get an integrated approach towards understanding modern medicine along with the traditional.” With a history of around 88 years, Naradevi Ayurveda Hospital is located in the central part of

FOSTER CITY — When conventional Western medicine isn’t working, a Foster City doctor says, more and more people are turning to Ayurveda — an ancient Indian healing science that treats health problems through diet, exercise and herbs. “In conventional medicine, we focus more on the physical body and in Ayurveda — it means the wisdom about healthy living — we much more focus on the body, mind and spirit,” says Dr. Jay Apte, who runs a Ayurvedic clinic in Foster City. “We always believe that our mind has more control over our physical body. “We focus on prevention rather than

The effectiveness of the ancient Indian healing art of ayurveda is getting a closer look in the U.S. Jon Mejia experienced heart palpitations after a particularly stressful period running his Santa Monica consulting firm. His doctor diagnosed an abnormal heart rhythm and sent him to a specialist at a prestigious Los Angeles medical center. An echocardiogram detected no cause for the extra heartbeats. Although his doctor told him that beta blocker drugs could control the symptoms, Mejia, 49, didn’t want to take them because of concerns about side effects. So Mejia turned instead to Martha Soffer and John Holmstrom, practitioners